HOLLYWOOD—I told myself for the start of 2025 is time to stop playing games. Precisely what does that mean? All those things that I have been thinking about doing as it pertains to cinema and my passions, I’m no longer putting on the backburner. Why? The realization has finally hit me, I’m not getting any younger, and the more that I delay or procrastinate the worse the situation becomes for me.

I am someone who studied film as an undergraduate at a major university. It was something that brought energy and passion to my life and I feel like I have allowed it to fizzle at times and mentally I just cannot allow it anymore. Why? If you’re always thinking about something, it must have importance in your life. When I tell you I live, breathe and sleep CINEMA. I truly mean it, but I haven’t actually pursued that passion as I should.

I have written two full-length screenplays during my lifetime. The first one was a bit easy because I had the story already crafted in my brain and it was all about placing it onto paper or onto the computer with my Final Draft software. Now granted a massive amount of things have changed since I first wrote that screenplay nearly a 15 years ago, and my ideas and thoughts have been fleshed out greatly since then, and rewrites and tweaks are needed to take a smart and clever idea to a new level.

That is indeed at the top of my priority list for 2025. The script has haunted me for years, as I think of dialogue, storyboards, scenes, plot twists and so much more on a daily basis. I’m acting these things out in my head and my thoughts, but I’m NOT taking any sort of action towards making the actual action become a reality.

I love to tell myself, “Oh, I don’t have the time.” However, that is simply an excuse. Yes, I have been burnt out at times from working too much, dealing with this and dealing with that, but I can carve out some time for THIS because it truly matters to me, and I haven’t done it. I’m not going to do that anymore in 2025. I am going to take my free time that I do actually have (while not a lot) and dedicate it to my craft. Not only do I want to complete a massive rewrite of my first script, but I want it polished, finalized and I want to start the process of looking for an agent in hopes of actually selling the script to a production company or movie studio.

Not going to happen overnight, nor will it be easy; it might be the toughest feat of my life, but what is the point of dreaming if you’re not taking action to make that actually dream come to fruition. My next goal for the year is to get back into the enjoyment of movie watching. I used to watch movies all the time, but now, it’s like it has to be something that truly grabs my attention because if it doesn’t I’m completely checking out on it. I just want to watch a movie and enjoy it without any distractions, and who cares if it’s something from 30 to 40 years ago. Sorry, the 70s and 80s had some of the best movies in the 20th and 21st centuries.

I would make the argument that Hollywood is not as creative and original as they used to be, and it’s unfortunately the truth. Original stories just don’t exist anymore, hence the reason I’m so passionate about screenwriting. There are so many stories that need to be told, but no one is telling them.

Like my first script I had the story all in my head, I’ve had another story cooking in my little brain for almost 15 years. I kind of have the beginning, middle and end already mapped out, I have yet to put it onto paper and I think I’ve finally reached that point where enough BS has taken place. What are you waiting for? You don’t have all the time in the world, you blink and it’s going to be over, now is the time, and that project is about to become a massive priority for me in addition, to taking time to enjoy cinema for what it is, an escape from reality and all the daily stressors and drama that comes with it.

You cannot work 24/7 and anyone who tells you that is simply crazy. It is just not conducive to living a healthy life, you have to have time to yourself where work is not a priority in your life. Before 2026 comes around, I want to have completed two full rewrites on previous screenplays that I crafted, while also completing two brand new screenplays with at least one successful rewrite on each of them. It may seem like a daunting accomplishment, but to be honest I think I can do it. I’m not like every other type of writer. I craft the story in my head and then I just let it spill out. There is no struggle to write if I know the story I want to write.

I know the stories I want to tell it’s all about forcing myself to be disciplined enough to get to my new writing laptop, updating my Final Draft software and just writing on a consistent basis regardless of the situation. An excuse is just that: AN EXCUSE!

I’ve wasted way too much time not doing the thing that means the absolute most to me for years, well 2025 looks like that is about to be the change of that for the better.